This July, Friday
nights will be rocking at one of the most intimate and interesting
venues in all of Brooklyn.
The Sunset Music Series will kick off its 11th season on July
7 at the Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge in Red Hook. The
festival features blues, swing, rock, jazz and country music.
George Tocci, Cobble Hill resident and creator of the festival,
said the Sunset Music series is an opportunity to provide a venue
for musicians who write and perform their own work.
This year’s lineup will feature Grammy nominee Sleepy LaBeef
as well as Tocci’s own band, Ellsworth and Hicks, playing blues
and folk on July 7. Jeremy Lyons and the Deltabilly Boys, a New
Orleans-based band, will reunite and play in Brooklyn on July
14 after being scattered after Hurricane Katrina. They will be
joined that night by Andrew T. Hunt & The Tears, a bluegrass
band fresh from recording their highly touted second CD titled
"Broken Wheel," Tocci said.
Folk musicians Tom Bianchi and Danielle Miraglia will be joined
by the jug band Life in a Blender on July 21, and rounding out
the series on July 28 will be The Amazing Incredibles, performing
an acoustic set, coupled with Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian
Circus of Dreams (pictured), with their distinct blend of folk,
rock and pop.
"This is going to be a great show at a really unique venue,"
Tocci said. "It’s right on the water and has a fantastic
view of the harbor and the Statue of Liberty. Only 100 people
fit inside the barge, but on the pier, you can hear everything
and hundreds more come and enjoy the music. It’s a great time
for everyone; it’s secluded from most of the city."
Need more incentive? Tocci says, "There’s plenty of parking."
"The Sunset Music Series 2006" will take place at the
Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge at the foot of Conover Street
in Red Hook, on Fridays in July, from 8 to 11 pm. Tickets are
$10 for adults and $6 for kids, ages 12 and younger in advance;
and $15 for adults and $8 for kids at the door. For more information
or to purchase tickets, visit www.smarttix.com or call (877)
238-5596.